Metal Heart
by Churcoise
Summary: You can learn a lot about someone when you're forced to sit next to them on a seven hour flight, encased in metal. You can learn even more when you're forced to spend a week with them in a foreign country, bound together by a stupid promise. And when they promise, they never ever break that promise. Modern AU.
1. Prologue

She wasn't exactly thrilled with the whole wedding thing to begin with, really. Yes, she was over Marius. Kind of. Yes, she was all smiles and dimples when they announced their engagement. And yes, she positively jumped for joy when the happy couple announced that they were having a destination wedding. Eponine Thénardier could pretend when she wanted to. It just bothered her that they had to be so showy about it. _We're going to be having it in the Cayman Islands! Isn't that a wonderful idea? It was all Cosette, really!_

Now, Cosette. The barrier between Eponine and Marius' happiness. Or at least that's what Eponine used to think. She blushed in embarrassment at her previous self. Still, there would always be that little piece of her heart that belonged to the Pontmercy boy. But in all honestly, Eponine couldn't compete with Cosette when it came down to it all. She wasn't graceful, her skin was neither creamy nor fair, and she was the worst cook you would ever find. A typical dinner in the Thénardier residence consisted of microwavable pizza or cereal. Nevertheless, she had other redeeming qualities. Like art. If Eponine had the money, she would have been able to go to École des Beaux-Arts, an art school in the middle of Paris. It was all just a silly dream that would never come true. She sent in the application "just for kicks", only to find out that maybe she did have something to offer this world. Maybe she wasn't a good for nothing whore like her mother frequently slurred.

Anyway, _wedding._

Cosette was nice enough to make Eponine a bridesmaid. She was stunned, of course. Eponine figured that since Marius chose all the boys to be his groomsmen, it was only fair that the one girl in the group should be included in the wedding party as well. But Cosette never hinted at this. Eponine wasn't ever very sweet to her, a little resentful over her relationship with Marius. But over the months planning the wedding, they forged a friendship of sorts. They talked mildly about the weather, wedding things, and The X Factor. It was one of Eponine's many guilty pleasures, along with chocolate and other various reality television shows.

And now she was rushing, for she overslept yet again, slipping on her worn out boots and haphazardly throwing on some blouse and her old jeans with paint stains on them. Eponine was ready to go to the airport. Only there was one slight problem; she had to ride with _him_. Now, she didn't know _him_ very well, instead choosing to spend most of her time with Courf or Grantaire. They were funny, charismatic, and caring. Well, Grantaire showed it in a different way. But _him_, she didn't know as well. _"Him"_ could also be referred to as Enjolras, who would also be one of Marius' groomsmen. Courfeyrac insisted that he was a nice, funny, and interesting guy if one got to know him. But he was often hunched over a law textbook, furiously writing things down. There was no denying the fact that he was handsome-everywhere he went a group of women (and the occasional guy) would sneak glances at him. But he was far too oblivious, caught up in his own world of fighting for social justice. Enjolras was studying to become a public defender. He wanted to give those who could not afford it a chance to speak up for themselves when caught in tough situations. It was admirable, sure. But many in the group worried that he was getting himself into a bad position. Would he make any money? What if the people he were to defend ended up being in the wrong? But he just waved them all away, determined to make a better France. They all joked that he would try to start a rebellion while in the Cayman Islands. He laughed it off, but Eponine noticed the glimmer of inspiration in his eyes.

Eponine grabbed her suitcase by the door and sped out, quickly locking the door and began the trek down the six flights of stairs in her old apartment building. You see, it would have been too easy if she met all the boys at the airport and then they took the flight together. Instead, the boys thought it would be a good idea to buy the last tickets for the 6:00 AM flight on July 8th, leaving Enjolras (who had the most classes, therefore staying at the university until very late in the day) to come home and find that the 6:00 AM flight was all full, causing him to have to buy a ticket for the next available flight. The next available flight happened to be at 8:30. And what a coincidence would that be, for Eponine had booked her flight for then too, utterly confused that a flight would be full for such an early time. Who goes to the Cayman Islands that often? She worked double shifts at the café to just afford the flight, and she sure was not going to miss it. Grantaire, being the sweet guy that he was, announced loudly during a rousing game of Pictionary that Enjolras and Eponine would be on the same flight. _And it would only make sense if they went together, wouldn't it?_ Eponine never wanted to wipe that smug grin off of his face more than she did in that moment. She had glanced at Enjolras, whom slightly resembled a deer in headlights at that moment. He was well bred and raised with manners, so of course he had to go and say, _"Sure. I can meet you there. Maybe we could carpool?" _to which Eponine shook her head bashfully, stating that she didn't want him to have to pick her up and make a big fuss. She was a big girl, and could take a cab by herself, thank you very much.

Which led her to now. It was six o' clock in the morning and she practically flung herself down the stairs. She couldn't be late. Enjolras had clearly stated on the phone that he wanted to get there at least two hours early incase of problems at customs or time delays or something. He was always prepared. Eponine hoped he wouldn't be too angry at her tardiness. She'd buy him chocolate to make up for it. And if he didn't like chocolate, then frankly, he wasn't worth sharing a plane ride with at all.

**Sorry if this was a bit boring, I just wanted to establish some character description and such beforehand! I promise, next chapter there will be real dialogue. I'd love to hear your thoughts/advice!**


	2. Chapter 1

Enjolras wasn't ever one for air travel. He never admitted this to anyone, for it would bring lots of teasing and poking and laughing and all those things he didn't like. But, one of his best friends was getting married, so he had to be there for him. _Marriage_, he smirked to himself. Binding yourself to one person for the rest of your life seemed absolutely ridiculous. Wouldn't one get bored? He shrugged to himself, and instead turned his attention on the street, waiting for the tiny girl to arrive. _Eponine Thénardier._ He didn't know much about her, except that she left home at seventeen. She liked art, too. He always caught a peek of whatever she was doodling while refilling his third cup (coffee to Enjolras was like alcohol to Grantaire) of black coffee. Enjolras kept looking at his watch nervously, hoping that the brunette would spring into sight already. He was getting nervous. _Always be punctual_, his mother told him.

"Enjolras!" he whipped around, only to be faced with Eponine waving to him across the street. He returned it, although a little less enthusiastic. She walked across the street, dragging the seemingly over packed red suitcase behind her. Enjolras crossed his arms firmly against his chest.

"I'm so sorry I'm late, I overslept and-"

"It's fine. Let's just go," he replied stiffly. Eponine raised her eyebrows. Enjolras immediately regretted being so tense, but didn't say anything about it. He wasn't that friendly without his morning dose of coffee. He dragged his suitcase past her, leaving Eponine in a state of confusion.

_What's his deal?_ She shrugged and looked around. Enjolras was already marching up to the check-in line. "Hey, wait up!" she called after him, running as fast as she could with a dead weight behind her. He didn't acknowledge her. _This is going to be a long day_, Eponine thought to herself.

"So…" Eponine trailed off awkwardly. They were now in the seating area, awaiting their flight. She had a habit of trying force conversation in new, uncomfortable situations. This was one of those times. Enjolras put his newspaper down.

"Yes?" he asked irritably. On second thought, maybe Eponine shouldn't have tried to talk to him while he was catching up on current events.

"Um, never mind. You're busy reading," she stammered, not daring to look him in the eye.

"No, no. You've already started. Finish your question, please. Maybe I'm interested," he commanded. It was weird. He seemed so strong and marble-like. But really, it seemed that he was sort of awkward and didn't know how to talk to the opposite sex. Eponine grinned mischievously to herself. She was going to take advantage of this.

"Are you a virgin?" she inquired. Enjolras choked on his coffee. Eponine laughed full out now, throwing her head back in the process. He was surprised, for sure. Eponine wasn't one to talk so…openly about this sort of thing.

"E-excuse me? That is a very personal question, Eponine, and for you to ask-"

"I'll take that as a 'yes', then," she cackled. The unlikely pair was starting to get looks from those around them.

.

"I AM NOT A-," Enjolras exclaimed in frustration. He noticed the stares and piped down. "_I am not a virgin_," he whispered. Eponine rolled her eyes.

"Okay, whatever you say," she remarked.

"For your information, I am not a complete bust," Enjolras hissed as he got back to reading the paper.

"A bust?"

"You know. Like in the museums. Basically, I'm not a complete marble head. I do have feelings," he stated. Eponine still wasn't buying it.

"Then prove it," she ordered quietly, crossing her arms against her chest. She had gotten Enjolras right where she wanted. He never backed down from a fight.

"How can I prove that I'm not a virgin?" he asks smartly, getting back to the original question. Another thing: Enjolras unwrapped was a bit of a smart-ass. Eponine pondered for a moment.

And then it all clicked. It was a crazy idea, something Eponine wouldn't have ever thought of in a normal circumstance. But her life, her thoughts weren't ever completely normal. They were always all over the place, as she was most of the time. Her emotions weren't ever constant. She was happy, soaring to the sky; she was mischievous, a glimmer of amusement in her eyes; and then with one snide remark she was thrown back onto the pavement. There was always some sort of fairytale-like quality to them, imagining the impossible, and willing for it to come true. Kind of like having a relationship with Marius. But maybe she'd never learn.

"When we get there, to the Caymans… you'll have…relations with me," Eponine stammered, looking down. Even though she was brought up rough and had been taken advantage of back in the day by her father's cronies, sex was still a shy subject for her. A scarlet blush immediately crept up onto her cheeks, finally realizing the full extent of what she just said. She buried her head in her hands, wanting to crawl into a hole and die. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean…I shouldn't have said that, I don't know what I was thinking, it just came to my mind and sometimes I just blurt things out and-"

"Eponine," she heard a steady, commanding voice from above. She raised her head and turned, to be faced with a very serious Enjolras. Which wasn't very unlikely. The unlikely thing, though, was the slight redness creeping up onto his "angelic" face.

"Yes?" she whispered.

"Okay," he stated simply, going back to his paper. It was as if Eponine's world had just stopped.

"…What?" she asked.

"I believe you are not hard of hearing. I said Okay. I will do it. I don't wimp out on things. Even with something like this. I won't back out if you won't. We're just bodies," Enjolras explained. A slight smirk appeared on his face as he kept reading. This didn't go unnoticed by Eponine.

"Why do you look so smug?" she exclaimed, waving her hands around manically in the process.

"Yes, of course. I just think that somewhere deep down inside, you wanted this to happen. You want to have 'relations' with me," he chided. Eponine gasped.

"That is not true at all! I just thought that-"

"I know more about the human mind more than you may think, Eponine. I know that you realize what a mess you've gotten yourself into, and that it'll interfere with your brooding over the 'good old times' with Marius and tanning on the beach. And I certainly know that you don't give up, and will defend your point until the end, even when you know you're wrong," he stated proudly. Eponine shook her head disdainfully.

"First of all, I don't tan. And second of all, I think you're describing yourself," she responded sassily, adding a raise of the eyebrow. Enjolras put his newspaper in his carry on bag, and stood up.

"Well, maybe we're more alike than you previously thought, Madame Thénardier," he marveled. And with that, he marched over to the boarding entrance, as many others were doing. Jaw gone slack, Eponine didn't have time to retort. With a loud huff, she slung her messenger bag over her shoulder and started to walk over to the boarding entrance.

Rule of thumb: never make deals with pompous assholes.

**Hiya! This has gone in a little bit of a different direction than I originally intended it to. I personally think that while Eponine is fiercely loyal and determined, she's still an emotional girl who can break easily. If she was living in this modern world, I'm sure she'd embarrass herself and speak before thinking, even if she sometimes made bold declarations. She'd wear her heart on her sleeve; yet have a hard time talking about certain subjects that could bring back bad memories from her childhood. I think that Enjolras is quite similar to her in the fact that he is determined as well, and as stubborn as a bull. But, he hides his emotions under a more "metal", hard exterior (see what I did there"). Eponine is all feelings, and Enjolras (while passionate) is more organized and has a clear layout of his plans. He likes routine.**

**Anyway, I'm trying to stay as true as I can to the characters. I haven't read the book yet (although it is sitting on my shelf, staring at me), but I'm just doing the best I can with using what I've learned from the musical as well as other great fanfics. I liked the movie as well, and am basing the physical descriptions off it. Aaron Tveit=*swoon*. I'd love to hear your feedback, and lemme know if there's something in particular I should work on. Thanks, and have a great rest of the day!**


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